Leaked video shows Aljazeera journalist in Egypt prison

A leaked video of an Al-Jazeera journalist held in Egypt since August has emerged, showing the 26-year old reporter in his prison cell in very poor health.

Abdullah Elshamy, who works for the Qatar-based network, has been on hunger strike for more than 100 days to protest against his detention.

The footage, a copy of which was sent to Middle East Eye, was recorded a week before the authorities moved him out of a prison to an undisclosed location.

"I’m Al Jazeera Arabic’s news reporter. I have been detained since August 14 in Cairo while I was covering the dispersal of Rabaa al-Adawiya sit-in. I was doing my job as a reporter and despite the authorities knowing this, I have been detained for 266 days without any charge and without committing any crime," he said.

"I record this video after I have reached 106 days of my hunger strike to hold the Egyptian government, the Egyptian judiciary and the general prosecutor responsible. I have requested several medical check-ups from independent sources and yet this help has not been provided," he added.

There are fears that Elshamy's health could deteriorate drastically.

"He is at a critical stage and needs to be transferred to hospital," his brother Mosaab told AFP on Tuesday.

"He can go into a coma if he doesn't take perfusions (drips) and if his blood sugar remains low... It is the start of the most dangerous period," he added.

And he has shed around 40 kilogrammes (88 pounds) over the past 112 days, according to Mosaab, who noted that "he is still in jail but we don't know where and we cannot communicate with him."

The military-installed Egyptian authorities accuse Elshamy of joining a "terrorist group" and spreading false news.

But Elshamy's lawyer, Shaaban Saeed, told AFP that his client "is paying the price for working for a channel that opposes the ruling regime."

Elshamy's wife Jihad Khaled was also on hunger strike, her mother Houda Abdelmoneim told AFP.

"Jihad began her hunger strike from March 14 to express solidarity with her husband," Abdelmoneim said.

Three other Al-Jazeera journalists, who work for the network's English-language channel, are held in Egypt and on trial for defamation and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood.